The muscles between the ribs are formed in such a way to allow our chest to expand and relax with breathing, and they perform their job many times a day, because adults breathe about 20 times per minute.. Many fibromyalgia (FM) patients and some chronic fatigue (ME/CFS) patients complain of chest wall pain and restriction of movement. Often this restriction and pain is misdiagnosed by the health care provider as costochondritis, which is inflammation of the muscles between our ribs usually seen when a viral or infectious process present.
I want to make this very clear; fibromyalgia is not considered an inflammatory disorder. Pain is thought to be due to a hyper-sensitized central nervous system bombarded by the presence of peripheral pain generators such as chronic myofascial pain.
More often than not, FM patients have comorbid myofascial trigger points (MTPs) related to chronic myofascial pain (AKA, myofascial pain syndrome). These MTPs shorten the muscle involved, cause pain and dysfunction, radiate pain, and in some cases cause neuropathy and other symptoms. The referral pattern is a consistent pattern for the location of that specific trigger point. It is my belief, and the belief of some experts, that chest wall pain found in FM is from trigger points (also abbreviated TrPs) in the muscles of the chest wall and rib cage. If present, they restrict chest wall motion during inspiration. This restriction then leads to ineffective breathing.
The treatment for chest wall pain found in FM is not medications for inflammation unless there is a known inflammatory condition present, (MTPs are not inflammatory in nature either). The treatment is trigger point therapy. If you can feel the tender painful knot apply 80% pressure with stroking motion for 30-60 sec. There can be many due to the lush environment provided by the complex network for proper breathing. Myofascial trigger points can be behind bone or other large muscles, the rib cage in this case. This makes it more difficult to treat them, however, deep breathing exercises such as Qi Gong are quite helpful to relieve restrictions.
Cellular oxidative stress has been indicated in fibromyalgia, an even better reason to get that chest wall moving. We explain deep breathing techniques in our book and the comorbid condition, chronic myofascial pain at length, “dos and don’ts”, therapies that can help, and what to avoid.
Every color in the color wheel has effects on us both physically and emotionally are very important in our lives as they directly influence our well-being and mood. We often hear people say that they are red hot mad, tickled pink, green with envy or ask someone why so blue? (sad). There have been so many studies showing the positive and the negative effects color can have on us.
Red color
Red reminds me of heat like running a temperature. It is the color of fire and blood. I think of anger or even a strong emotion out of control cry.
Red is strong, powerful, often associated with energy, warmth, anger, danger, aggression, excitement, passion, and love.
What’s good about it? It has been proved that color can have a physical effect on a body. It stimulates the body (including circulation, intestine, and appetite), and raises the heart rate. Red increases muscle tone promotes the pulse, raises blood pressure, promotes blood circulation, excretion of adrenaline.
What’s bad about it? It can cause high blood pressure, heart conditions, sleep problems, epilepsy, asthma, deepens breathing, and can cause headaches.
Blue makes me think of the lake, beautiful blue skies, my ice packs, a record my mom had called Navy Blue, tears, feeling sad, and black & blue marks on the body. Wow, talk about mixed emotions. It truly gives me happy thoughts and very depressing ones.
Blue affects us mentally and is essentially soothing, rather than the physical reaction we have to read. It is considered to have both negative and positive psychological effects on the mind
What’s good about it? Blue is strongly associated with tranquility and coolness, calmness peace, relaxation, slowing down, steadying, self-expression, intuition, honesty, truth, cleansing, soothing, gets rid of nervous tension. promotes human metabolism, (suppresses appetite), quietness, slowing heart rate, reducing respiratory rhythm, encouraging mental activity, concentration, they say it is the color of peace and rest. Blue is supposed to be able to help with infections with fever or inflammation, stings, headaches, period pains, insomnia, stress, anxiety, obsessions, psychoses, and learning difficulties.
What’s bad about it? Blue is cold, aloof, and withdrawn. It can make a person feel cold, sad, unemotional, and unfriendly. Too much dark blue can lead to depression and loneliness.
I loved purple when I was a teenager. My bedroom walls were lavender and the bed cover, curtains, etc were white with lavender flowers. I moved to Northern Wisconsin and learned I am not supposed to like Purple because it stood for the rival football team.
Purple is a mixture of the peace, spirituality, and stability that comes from blue and the energy, heat, aggression, and anger from the red colors.
What’s bad about it? In a negative sense, purple is thought of as arrogance, conceit, gaudiness, inferiority, immaturity, corruption, delusions of grandeur, and the social climber.
Too much dark purple can bring on moodiness, frustration, gloom, and sad feelings. It can cause frustration. It is associated with nightmares and addictions.
What’s good about it? Lighter purples balance the mind, bring peace, inspiration, spirituality, clarity, and compassion. Light purple evokes romantic and nostalgic feelings.
Purples have been used in the care of mental nervous disorders because they have been shown to help balance the mind and transform obsessions and fears.
It is believed to be helpful for exhaustion, migraines, stress, anxiety, and low self-esteem. A purple room can boost a child’s imagination or an artist’s creativity.
If you are having trouble sleeping try using a light purple light bulb in the lamp by your bed.
Purple is associated with royalty. wisdom, mystery, magic, and ambition. The Purple Heart is a U.S. Military decoration given to soldiers wounded in battle.
There is a very long list of various diseases and conditions that use purple Awareness ribbons. Some of them are Fibromyalgia, Lupus, Neuropathy, and many more.
Even the essential oil Lavender is used as a calming, relaxing tool.
Now, many years later after being diagnosed with Fibromyalgia purple gives me the feeling of belonging, unity, and strength.
Like many people diagnosed with fibromyalgia, I have also been diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome now known as SEID (Systemic Exertion Intolerance Disease).
No matter what fancy name the medical community uses, to me it means that I am always tired. Every activity that I choose to do will eat away at what little energy I have each day. I have to decide after work if I have enough energy to go to the post office, bank, swimming, or if I need to go straight home for my 3:30 p.m. nap.
I am always looking for ways that I can save my energy.
Grocery shopping takes the most out of me. It doesn’t matter how rested I am when I start shopping, by the time I’ve made it through all of the aisles, waited in the check-out line, pushed the cart to the car and unloaded the cart into the car, I am done. It becomes an effort just to drive home. Luckily, my husband and daughter carry the bags upstairs to the kitchen and help put away the groceries because after shopping, I grab an ice pack and head straight to my chair for a few hours.
More times than I care to admit, I have gotten half way through the store and find myself staring at the shelves. I stand there in a mindless fog, and even though I have my grocery list, I am lost. It is hard to explain to someone who hasn’t experienced it. At that moment, I am unable to process my thoughts into words and feel as though I can’t go on. I have spent all of my spoons.
So, I was really excited when our town recently added an Aldi’s. It appealed to me for a couple of reasons. It is smaller (less walking), offers a greater variety of natural foods and is cheaper. I did my homework before going. I looked up the Wal-Mart price of everything on my shopping list so I could compare them to Aldi’s pricing.
One of the ways Aldi’s cuts costs is by having the shopper bag their own groceries. After I went through the check-out line, I pushed the cart to the bagging table. I didn’t think it would be a big deal to bag the groceries, but it turned out to be exhausting. Basically, I had to handle the items in the cart three times. First, leaning into the cart to take the food out and place it on the table. Second, I placed the groceries in the bags. Third, I put the full grocery bags back into the cart and finally, after pushing the cart to the car, one more time I took the bags out of the cart placing them into the car.
It took all my spoons, i.e. energy, to drive home and put away the groceries. Afterwards, as I was resting, I compared the prices between the two stores.
The total savings was $15.71. Was it worth it? I can think of a lot of things that I would rather spend my spoons (energy) on than grocery shopping.
To the healthy shopper, it probably seems ridiculous that I would rather spend an extra $15.71 than all of the steps it took to bag my groceries. It really is a struggle deciding between saving money and saving spoons. I need both. It has taken me years to realize how important it is to do everything I can to save my energy.
I am happy to report that I may even be able to save more spoons.
Some Wal-Marts have added a new grocery shopping feature called “pick up today.” You simply go online and select your groceries and the time you want to pick them up. There is no fee and the only requirement is that your purchase is over $50.00. You drive up to the door and they will put your bags in your car for you. You will want to check with your local grocery stores because I’ve heard this is becoming a trend.
I know that there really is no way that my non-fibromite friends & family will truly understand how it feels however I still find myself trying to explain it to them.
My daughter almost ended up grounded because I did not remember a conversation that we had last night. I know what you are thinking – but she is a good kid so I knew I could believe her when she told me we had talked and what had been discussed.
There was so many times today that I said the wrong word or went simply BLANK.
When I was describing it to someone today I was trying to remember if I had already told her. If so, she was nice enough to listen to me tell it again.
As I am writing this I can hear others telling me “it happens the older you get”. I get it. Really, I do. No matter how much I lie about my age my body reminds me daily of my real age. BUT IT IS NOT THE SAME!
It could be as simple as losing things or transposing numbers but fibro fog can seriously affect one’s quality of life.
You sit and stutter trying to come up with the word. ‘The thing, you know, the thing that you use for — never mind, the word is gone.”
It can be very disorienting and scary. It can screw up all of your senses.
One of my friends describes it “as if you’re getting startled awake in the middle of the night.”
There are many things that can make your symptoms worse and I have experienced many of them the past couple of days. Thanks to the wonderful summer storms we are experiencing I have had increased pain and less sleep.
Like everything with fibro we can’t predict when we are going to get lost in the fog but there are some things we can do to help alleviate the fibro fog provided you remember them.
Use planners. PLURAL… more than one.. paper, electronic, post-it notes & alarms
Stick to a routine. Establishing routines can help you deal with brain fog.
Go to bed and wake up the same time every day, even on weekends.
Check on your meds. Medicine can cause the fibro fog feeling. Talk with your medications that can help with attention and concentration.
Fibro Fog sucks. I could use prettier words but I can’t think of any better way to express it. It took a long time but I have finally learned to laugh about a lot of the things that I have done during a foggy day. Please feel free to post a foggy moment that made you laugh.
It was very different than it is today. I was your typical type A perfectionist. My life was mostly about work. I was editor of a rapidly-growing weekly newspaper, and with that came a lot of deadlines and stress. I loved my job, but the pace of it began to wear on me after a few years.
I admit I was bad about work/life balance, but I did have some hobbies. I liked working on home-improvement projects. I liked going to yard sales, antique stores or thrift stores and looking for deals. I love beautiful things, so I enjoyed museums and parks. I had an interest in New Age and paranormal topics (meditation, Reiki, ufology, ghosts, etc.). I love animals and have volunteered with animal-rescue groups over the years.
I had my first symptoms in 2010 following the death of my mom from lung cancer. My first noticeable symptom was severe fatigue, which wasn’t surprising given how hard I worked. I was so tired, but at the same time, it felt like my body was always in overdrive. I couldn’t relax, and I was having a hard time sleeping.
About this same time, I began having urinary urgency, which I chalked up to being hereditary because my aunts had dealt with that issue. I also had severe pain in my hands, which was diagnosed as carpal tunnel syndrome. I later found out that was a misdiagnosis.
Over the next couple of years, the pain in my hands migrated, and I began having pain throughout my body. After going to a series of doctors and being misdiagnosed several times, I was eventually diagnosed with fibromyalgia in early 2014.
Last summer, I found out I have chronic Lyme disease and several other tick-borne co-infections. My doctors now believe Lyme and the co-infections are the underlying causes for my fibromyalgia symptoms. I’m currently being treated for tick-borne infections, and I’m hoping my symptoms will eventually dissipate.
I also have overactive bladder, neuropathy in my feet and thyroid dysfunction – all of which are probably related to Lyme.
At first, I thought I had adrenal fatigue or possibly hypothyroidism like my mom. I thought I just needed to rest and regroup. I gave up my stressful job and moved to another state. I started to take better care of myself. I slowly changed my diet. I started exercising. I meditated every day. I made all of the common lifestyle changes that you read about online, but no matter what I did, I still felt awful.
I began going to various doctors, trying to figure out what was wrong with me. Most of them thought I was depressed and tried to write me prescriptions for antidepressants, but I had suffered from depression earlier in my life, and I knew what I was feeling was NOT depression. It was a very frustrating time because my doctors and my family didn’t believe that I was sick.
Everything has changed. I no longer have my beloved career. I’m no longer able to work full time because I don’t have the stamina. I’m not able to take care of my home the way I used to. I’m not able to participate in many of the extracurricular activities that I used to enjoy.
My life is very limited at this point because of the severity of my symptoms. Pretty much every decision I make now is affected by my illness in some way. Decisions are always tradeoffs. If I do XYZ, then I won’t have the energy to do ABC. Like many with chronic illness, my life revolves around treatment.
Pain and fatigue are my biggest daily battles. I have always been a can-do sort of person, so it’s been a mental struggle for me to admit that I have limitations now. I still want to do all of the things that I used to do, and I tend to push myself, and then pay for it. I really struggle with pacing myself.
The best thing? I think I am a much kinder person than I was when I was healthy. I have a lot more compassion for other people, and my mindset is more service-oriented now. I am much less self-absorbed.
The worst thing? Losing my independence. I’m more dependent on others now, and I don’t like that one bit. Financially, chronic illness has been a huge drain.
Prior to my Lyme diagnosis, my family didn’t really believe I was sick. When I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, I felt vindicated because I finally had a label. I didn’t realize that so many people see fibromyalgia as a “fake” illness, and unfortunately some of the people closest to me fell into that category.
They finally accepted my illness when I had a blood test showing that I was positive for Lyme disease. It’s better now, but it’s very hurtful and stressful when your family thinks you’re a hypochondriac and lazy.
Part of it was because I didn’t have the support of my family. I needed to connect with others who were going through the same thing.
I had also become overwhelmed with the information that I found online about fibromyalgia. There are millions of products and services marketed to fibro sufferers, and it was so hard to figure out what might work and what was a rip-off.
At the time of my fibromyalgia diagnosis, I’d worked almost 20 years as a journalist. I definitely knew how to research and write about health topics, so I decided to use my skills as a journalist to help myself and others, and that’s when I founded FedUpwithFatigue.com.
First, I want people to know that fibromyalgia and chronic Lyme are real! We are not fabricating our symptoms. We are not lazy. We are not trying to get sympathy.
Second, I want people to know that fibromyalgia is complicated. Despite those annoying Lyrica commercials on TV, there is no pill that fixes fibro. The fibro drugs on the market only help about one-third of people.
Third, I want people to know the medical system is failing those who are chronically ill – especially the chronic pain community. Our medical system is fantastic for broken bones and the common cold. It is a dismal failure when it comes to treating chronic conditions, like fibromyalgia and Lyme. These conditions require more than a seven-minute doctor’s visit and a prescription. They require physicians to take a holistic, systemic approach to treatment, and conventional medicine doesn’t allow for that.
I know some people are going to take what I’m about to say the wrong way, but I hope they will read my entire response before jumping to conclusions.
What I would say to someone newly diagnosed is this: Don’t accept that diagnosis. I no longer view fibromyalgia as a condition in and of itself. I see it as a collection of symptoms signaling that there’s a deeper problem.
Now, in no way am I saying fibromyalgia doesn’t exist. What we’re feeling is very real, and it’s painful, and it’s miserable, and it’s debilitating.
But what I am saying is to push yourself and your physicians to delve deeper. Don’t just accept the label of fibromyalgia. There’s a Canadian study that found up to two-thirds of people with fibromyalgia may be misdiagnosed. That’s millions of people who are probably living with conditions that could potentially be treated if they were properly diagnosed.
Our bodies are marvelous machines. They are designed to heal themselves. So, when our bodies go haywire, we need to question what’s the underlying cause for that? Don’t just accept that this is your lot in life, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Keep digging for answers!
My take has always been that if we can figure out the underlying cause for our symptoms, and treat that, then maybe we can recover. In the coming weeks, I’ll be exploring the issue of underlying causes for fibromyalgia on my blog in greater detail.
Don’t rely exclusively on your physicians for answers. Do you own research! Become your own guinea pig – within reason, of course!
The truth is most physicians don’t know much of anything about fibromyalgia outside of what the Pfizer and Eli Lilly drug reps tell them. I know that sounds jaded, but the reality is fibromyalgia research is still in its infancy. We don’t know what causes it, and we don’t know how to treat it, and neither do our doctors!
Many doctors are too busy to keep up to date on the research, so don’t rely on them to know about the latest and greatest treatments.
I know there are some good fibromyalgia doctors out there, but at the end of your appointment, when you walk out of that exam room, he or she is on to the next patient and probably won’t think about you again until your next appointment. YOU have to live with this condition every single day, so take an active role in your treatment plan!
And consider branching out from conventional medicine. The only progress I’ve ever made was when I worked with physicians who practiced in the areas of functional medicine and/or naturopathy. These practitioners take a more systemic approach to treatment, as I mentioned before, and they’re much more likely to work with you on identifying your underlying causes for illness versus just treating symptoms with pharmaceuticals.
My fellow fibro warriors! My mom (who also had fibromyalgia and probably Lyme disease) used to say there’s always somebody who has it worse than me. Although I’m in pain every day, I know there are others in our community who are struggling with symptoms that are much more severe than mine. Hearing their stories and struggles keeps me motivated to stay of service to the fibro and Lyme communities.
I was posting things I have done because of fatigue/”fibro fog”. After sharing my stories others began to share theirs. I saw myself in everyone of their stories. I know it makes me feel better to know that I am not alone.
I stood in front of my office door pushing the button on my key wondering why it was not opening my door. It took longer than I care to admit for me to realize that I had been clicking my car remote door opener.
I told my daughter to meet me at the bank. I got there and texted her telling her that I was there waiting for her. She called asking where I was. She had gone to a different bank in town. I was positive that she was at the wrong bank. In fact, she even drove over to the bank I was at meanwhile I had told the lady at the bank that my daughter was late because she had gone to the wrong bank. She arrived and we handed the teller the information for her to make the deposit. You guessed it. She didn’t have an account there. She had been at the right bank but the good kid she is instead of arguing with me or saying something about my memory we just drove over to the correct bank did our banking and went about our day.
“I sprayed hairspray under both arms before realizing that it was not deodorant.”
“I put milk in the cabinet & cereal in the refrigerator.”
“I fall asleep in the shower.”
“I had to stop putting my socks on standing up. My balance has gotten really bad, but it’s mostly because I put my shoes on next, like auto pilot. Know where this is going? Socks, shoes, pants! Then I would fall over because my foot would foot would get stuck in my pants leg because I had already put my shoes on.”
“I arrived at doc appointments at wrong docs and times. But it’s rare. Once, I went for yearly check up and had absolutely no memory of having ever been there or seen the staff before but they knew me. Freaked me out because my father has advanced dementia. It never came to me. Still don’t remember them. I walked in office saying, did you move?”
“I drove to the wrong city for 1 of my medical appointments! I was about 1 hour farther out than I needed to be at their main location. Now I can’t even drive myself anymore…who knows what would happen…I would for sure fall asleep at the wheel before I made it!”
“My big one is getting home from the grocery store, and I’m so wiped out sometimes that my mind blanks on one of the bags, so something doesn’t end up in the fridge or freezer that should have. I hate when I do that!”
“I went to a hair appointment Tues. when it was actually not till Thurs.”
“I tried to put the milk in the kitchen cabinet one day. The only reason I didn’t is because it wouldn’t fit.”
“A couple weeks ago, I was sitting in the car, that I’ve had since 2013, waiting for my husband. He came back to the car to tell me something and I had no clue how to roll the window down or open the door. I sat and played with the locks, until I found the handle…lol Yes, funny, yet scary!”
“I have no more drinking glasses left. I broke them all. I would just randomly drop them. Plastic is the new glass in my household.”
“Personally I like fibro pregnancy brain duo. lol I put everything in the freezer or wrong cabinets.”
“Drove my preteen daughter to the wrong school for morning drop off….! Luckily she noticed! Haha!”
“I put my phone and umbrella in the fridge one morning.”
I have been struggling with fatigue more than usual these past few months. I will end this blog by sharing that when I began to proof read the above article it appeared to be longer than I had remembered. I found out why. I had posted each of the stories 2-3 times.
Share your stories in the comment box below.
“Wishing you sun~filled days & rest~filled nights”
Relationships can be difficult for healthy individuals.
They are even harder when you add the complications of being in constant pain, severe fatigue, anxiety/depression and cognitive impairment.
There are many types of interpersonal relationships. Some of the various types are friendship, family, and work.
Fibromyalgia has changed all of my relationships. I have little energy to do the things that I used to do. I loved to go out and socialize. Now, I prefer to stay home in my comfy chair.
Spouse
Fibromyalgia caused me to lose my career of 20 years. I have a wonderful job but the pay is 1/2 of what I was making previously leaving my spouse mostly financially responsible.
Being married to someone with fibromyalgia is not easy. It is common that the spouse feels stress, fatigue & loneliness. Couples are more likely to be at risk for divorce when one of them have a chronic pain illness.
27 years ago we agreed to “in sickness & in health” I don’t think that we really consider what that means when you say “I do”.
Prior to being ill my husband and I split the chores. He would take care of the outside and I would take care of the inside. I loved to cook new recipes, make breakfast in the morning and keep the house clean and decorated.
Not only does the spouse take on the financial burden, housekeeper but also as caregiver. reminding me to take medications, go to sleep, ice packs, etc…..
I am too tired or in too much pain to want to be intimate which puts a strain on my marriage.
I don’t have the energy so he goes without me. I can’t blame him. Why should he stop going to see movies because the lights are too bright, the noise too loud and it is painful sitting in the theater seats.
It is difficult enough taking care of yourself and your relationship with your spouse when you have fibromyalgia. Try being a “normal” parent. I became sick when our daughter was 9 years old. She was old enough to understand that mom was sick but still too young to have to grow up so fast.
It is hard for a child to see their parent crying, not able to walk without help and needing the child to be the caregiver. I am filled with more than the normal “parent guilt”. She just successfully completed her first year of college and has returned home for the summer. She immediately began to clean the house, grocery shop and be there for me again.
This past Mother’s Day, I received a lecture from my 19 year old that I needed to get out of the house more, needed to head back to swimming and start doing things with my friends. Most people would react that a child should not talk to their parent in this matter. It hurt but more because she is right. I have closed myself off more and more over the past few years.
Although, my pain is under control I find myself hiding from doing things scared that it will affect my health. It has affected me more emotionally/mentally.
I was the co-worker that planned the after work activities. I made sure that everyone had a birthday card and treats. They didn’t get just any treat. It would be their favorite. I took the time to learn what their favorite treat was and often made the treat myself.
I have a great group of co-workers but usually do not accept invitations to do things outside of work. The exhaustion of working is so extreme that I do not allow myself the enjoyment I feel when I am with others. I may text a couple of friends or facebook message them but that is the extent of my socializing. I actually try and avoid talking on the phone.
Outside of work my life consists of coming home, changing into my pajamas and sitting in my chair until it is time to go to bed. Once I was no longer a leader to a support group I stopped participating. I lost the reason for me to go, I was helping others. A few weeks ago, I realized that for 2 1/2 days I sat in my chair watching Netflix and playing solitaire.
Reading this over, I know I am doing wrong, what I should be doing but I can not seem to motivate myself to do it. How easy it is to help others and how hard it is to help ourselves. A lot of relationships have been destroyed because of my illnesses but probably none as bad as with myself.
After completing the above post I asked my daughter to read if for me. She said, “it’s good, but you need another paragraph”, “?” “Aren’t you Fibro Warriors ~ Living Life still? Where is your plan? How are you going to get out of this? You always have a plan, write it down and make yourself accountable”. I picked up my phone, texted my friend telling her I would go swimming after work on Tuesday.
Each night this week after work I will pick one of my to-do’s that I have promised others I would do and complete the task. I will post my to do’s on the kitchen counter and allow my family to check on my status.
I will do these things because as my daughter reminded me I have been able to manage my pain and continue working because I balance movement & rest, socializing and solitude but most of all I am and will continue to be a Fibro Warriors ~ Living Life.
I am like most fibromites. I struggled to get someone to believe that there was something wrong and that my symptoms were not just “in my head.” Prior to being diagnosed with fibro, I racked up a list of diagnosed conditions / diseases. Once diagnosed with fibromyalgia, it all began to make sense. I looked at the lists of symptoms and found myself checking them off one at a time.
As additional symptoms and conditions appeared, I immediately chalked them up to fibro. For example, I began having extreme sharp head pains, dizziness and increased mental fog. One time when I was visiting my parents, I had another episode. My mom reacted like most moms: Get to the doctor! She spouted family history of brain aneurysms. Like many daughters, I ignored her.
A week later though, I started experiencing black outs and an increasing light-headed dizziness. While I was certain these were fibro symptoms, I did make an appointment with the doctor. He scheduled an MRI, the results of which showed nothing irregular, and he was 90% certain that my new symptoms were fibro related.
Although I agreed with the doctor that the new symptoms were fibro related, I started wondering about how do we differentiate between what is caused by fibromyalgia and what is something new or more serious?
At what point do we see a physician? Will they believe us? Do we begin to assume that any new health issue that arises is caused by fibro? Are we causing ourselves harm and putting our own health at risk by dismissing indicators or signs that could be other ailments?
What about our family and friends? Do they become so accustomed to our “complaining” that they begin to tune us out? How often do we ignore new symptoms? Are we just “sweeping them under the fibro rug?”
What can we do to avoid making this mistake?
As I continued pondering these questions, I came up with a few ideas:
Working with a fibromyalgia coach can be very helpful; they can help you talk through what’s happening and help you figure out the next step to take.
Many times, you will have a “sixth sense” about whether it’s fibro or maybe something else. If you’re not sure, always err on the side of talking with your doctor.
Just as we don’t sweep dust under the rug, let’s make sure we don’t sweep all of our symptoms under the rug of fibromyalgia!
It is that time of year when school supplies are lining the store shelves and proud parents are posting first day of school pictures.
I have said it time and time again that I am lucky because I have found the right combination of medicines, supplements & integrative therapies to be able to keep working outside of home. I LOVE my job. I work as a paraprofessional helping kiddos (English as a second language) ranging from Pre-K to 12th grade. I could write a blog post talking about all of the things that I love about my job but the best thing is the kids and their families.
Today, is my last day of summer before going back to work. I have been off since the last day of summer school on July 21st. It is definitely time to go back. I miss my students and quite honestly I miss money.
If you do not have fibro you probably do not have a clue the struggles of working. Just because I am able to go to work does not mean that I am feeling great or even good. The levels change but everyday I am in pain and fatigued. It is a struggle to get out of bed, take my meds, get dressed and drive to work. By the time I get to work my meds have kicked in and my body isn’t as stiff and sore as it was when I woke up. It isn’t always easy being at work. We all have those triggers that can increase the pain, fatigue & brain fog.
However, for me on most days the benefits of getting up and getting out of the house are worth the early alarm and forcing myself to get going on my worst days.
How can a job help you feel better? Certainly this is not the case for most but for me my job helps me get exercise, keep me from isolating myself, increases “happy” feelings & able to pay for my treatments.
First, we all know that exercise is important for many reasons but for someone that is in pain walking I am limited to what kind of exercise I can do. Low-impact exercise often reduces pain and fatigue, creates endorphin’s that help to reduce anxiety, stress, and depression.
It is important that fibromites balance movement and rest. My work schedule ensures that I do both. I follow the student’s schedules which means that each hour when the class bell rings I am up and walking to my next class.
Secondly, Fibromyalgia can be very isolating. The pain and fatigue can limit how much activity we can do. It is easy to withdraw from social life and stay at home. Even phone calls can be too much. Although, social media offers connections to others it isn’t the same as in person. I have spent the majority of my time off not leaving my house or yard. Partly because it is my time to rest, mark things off the to-do list, by the time others are off work or ready to do something I am tired and getting ready for bed and financial reasons.
Third, working with the kids has the same effect on me as volunteering. Creating positive learning experiences has a positive impact on me as well. Helping someone else can help you change your own outlook and attitude.
Fibromyalgia is not cheap. In addition to the normal bills that everyone has fibro adds a huge expense. I have found through trial and error things that help to manage fibromyalgia and the “evil sidekicks”. On a daily basis I use medicine, supplements, ice packs, heating pads, kt tape, essential oils, and pain relieving devices. Each month I possibly could add having appointments with a doctor, my chiropractor or my acupuncturist.
Back to School means all of those wonderful things to me. It helps me to take care of me so I can continue to be a Fibro Warrior ~ Living Life.
Waania Shamim is a young, enthusiastic woman who has lived with fibromyalgia, chronic pain, and chronic migraines for the last three years. She puts a positive spin on her life as a chronic pain patient and wants to help others feel better about their prognoses. Waania is on her way to becoming a wonderful advocate.
Written in G ♯ minor and at 120 beats per minute, the synthetic sound that rocks with pop beats became instantly recognizable. There she appears in a one strap black latex jumpsuit, glistening as she emerges from the water wearing a mask that looks as if it has been made from a disco ball. There she is in all her glory – beautiful, eccentric, bold. Since that first image of her, I have been a fan of this extraordinary woman.
Lady Gaga, who has since been named, Mother Monster by her followers, has never apologized for being outlandish. She is known for being provocative and unconventional in her ways of entertaining, hello remember the Meat Dress? She is also known for being completely open about her life and past and experiences.
But, Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta has been in the news as of late not for her music, but for revealing she suffers from chronic pain and fibromyalgia.
This week alone this mega icon has canceled her European lag of her tour and posted her pain. Not many people are open about their private lives and for any person who suffers from anything, being open to the public critique and ridicule makes speaking out harder than just being mute, putting on a smile, and saying “Everything is fine.”
So why is her canceling her tour, coming out as suffering from Fibromyalgia, and promoting a documentary about her life behind the lights of stardom entitled “Lady Gaga: Five Foot Two,” news?
Lady Gaga’s public admittance is bringing this disorder that is estimated to affect more than 100 million people* to the forefront. I believe her coming out and being truthful about the chronic pain she lives with is starting the conversation that hasn’t always happened. If a star as huge as LadyGaga has chronic pain and fibromyalgia, then it solidifies that it is real because she is perfect, has a perfect life, and can’t possibly be faking it. Right? She’s never lied to her fans or the public about any aspect of her life, trauma, and beliefs so why would she make this up?
“I use the word suffer not only because trauma and chronic pain have changed my life, but because they are keeping me from living a normal life.” ~ Lady Gaga
Her documentary is being looked at by some as potentially a negative based on how she portrays herself and chronic pain. Some people are saying they’re scared of how this will portray chronic pain because she, as a celebrity, has access to treatments and medication that those of who aren’t millionaires don’t have. I am sure she is with the best doctors and using the best “treatments” available because she does have the money, but I think speaking out about it is more of a win than whatever she shows us in her documentary. The words “chronic pain,” and “fibromyalgia” are now on the radar of millions of people thanks to her. I’m sure some of her fans who have never heard of fibromyalgia looked it up, are trying to understand it, and maybe even finding people they never knew who suffered are suffering all simply because she put it out in the universe.
I might not be saying it from a microphone to millions of people at once but I have a voice. I do not shy away from talking about what I have, what I “suffer” with. And, like Gaga says in her statement posted today:
I use the word “suffer” not for pity, or attention, and have been disappointed to see people online suggest that I’m being dramatic, making this up, or playing the victim to get out of touring. If you knew me, you would know this couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m a fighter.
To me Lady Gaga brings hope for awareness, understanding, and acceptance. She shows that a celebrity, a world-wide icon at the end of the day, struggles with the same issues you and I do. She is more than the woman we see in her extravagant videos or on stage doing amazing choreography in heels that most of us couldn’t even stand in for a second. She. Is. Human.
